Disclaimer: This calculator provides estimates only and should not be considered financial or tax advice. Always consult with a qualified tax professional or accountant before making investment decisions. This tool does not constitute advice from the Australian Taxation Office. Evercend Pty Limited does not hold an Australian Financial Services Licence.
Salary sacrifice calculator inputs and results
Your salary
Amount you want to redirect into super before tax.
Settings
Enter your salary details to compare
Add your gross salary and a salary sacrifice amount to see the side-by-side tax comparison and net benefit of the strategy.
Salary sacrifice into super in Australia
The Salary Sacrifice calculator compares your take-home pay, tax and super contributions with and without redirecting part of your before-tax salary into super. It shows the tax difference so you can see the effect of sacrificing a given amount.
How to use this calculator
Enter your salary and residency
Enter your annual salary and residency status, then the amount you want to salary sacrifice into super each year, plus any study or training loan if the calculator includes it.
Read the comparison
The results show take-home pay, total tax and the super contribution for both cases side by side.
How this calculator works
Salary sacrifice redirects part of your before-tax pay into super as a concessional contribution, which lowers your taxable income. The sacrificed amount is taxed at 15 percent inside the fund rather than at your marginal rate plus the 2 percent Medicare levy, so the saving is the gap between those two rates applied to the amount sacrificed. The calculator applies the 2026-27 resident tax brackets and the 2025-26 Medicare levy, the latest the ATO has published, to each scenario and compares them.
Assumptions used
The arrangement is treated as an effective salary sacrifice agreed with the employer for future earnings; contributions are assumed to stay within the $32,500 concessional cap; and the comparison does not model Division 293 tax, which adds 15 percent for people whose combined income and concessional contributions exceed $250,000. The employer super guarantee is left unchanged, because an employer must still pay the full 12 percent super guarantee as though no salary sacrifice were in place. This calculator does not apply the maximum super contribution base of $270,830 a year, so for a salary above that figure the estimated employer contribution is overstated.
Worked example
A resident earning $90,000 who sacrifices $10,000 into super removes $10,000 from taxable income.
On that $10,000, income tax at the 30 percent marginal rate plus the 2 percent Medicare levy would have been $3,200, while the fund instead pays 15 percent contributions tax of $1,500, a difference of $1,700 for the year. Take-home pay falls by less than the $10,000 sacrificed because tax is reduced, and super rises by $8,500 after contributions tax.
The calculator produces the figures for the salary and amount entered.
What changes your salary sacrifice benefit
Several things change the tax saving and super outcome from salary sacrifice. The main ones are:
Marginal tax rate
The saving is the gap between the marginal rate plus Medicare levy and the 15 percent contributions tax, so higher earners save more per dollar.
Concessional cap
The concessional cap of $32,500 limits how much can be sacrificed at the concessional rate.
Division 293 tax
Division 293 lifts the effective contributions rate to 30 percent above $250,000 and narrows the benefit.
Low income
The Low Income Super Tax Offset can refund the 15 percent contributions tax up to $500 for income of $37,000 or less, reducing the advantage.
Unchanged super guarantee
The employer must still pay the full 12 percent super guarantee in full on the pre-sacrifice salary.
Access rules
Sacrificed amounts are preserved until a condition of release is met.
Rates and assumptions used
| Item | Value used | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Contributions tax on salary sacrifice | 15% in the fund | ATO, Salary sacrificing super |
| Concessional contributions cap 2026-27 | $32,500 | ATO, Understanding concessional and non-concessional contributions |
| Resident rate, $45,001 to $135,000 | $4,020 plus 30c per $1 over $45,000 | ATO, Tax rates for Australian residents |
| Medicare levy | 2% of taxable income | ATO, Medicare levy reduction for low-income earners |
| Division 293 threshold | $250,000 combined income and concessional contributions | ATO, Division 293 tax on concessional contributions by high-income earners |
| Employer super guarantee | Full 12% still payable on the pre-sacrifice salary | ATO, Salary sacrificing super |
| Low Income Super Tax Offset | Up to $500 for income of $37,000 or less | ATO, Low income super tax offset |
Figures checked against the sources above on 17 October 2026.
Frequently asked questions
The saving is the difference between your marginal rate plus the 2 percent Medicare levy and the 15 percent contributions tax, applied to the amount sacrificed. Higher marginal rates produce a larger saving per dollar.
No. An employer must still pay the full 12 percent super guarantee as if no salary sacrifice arrangement were in place.
Salary sacrifice counts towards the concessional cap, $32,500 for 2026-27, together with super guarantee and personal deductible contributions. Amounts over the cap are added to taxable income and taxed at the marginal rate less a 15 percent offset.
Division 293 tax adds 15 percent, lifting the effective rate on concessional contributions to 30 percent for the portion above the threshold.
The benefit is smaller near the tax-free threshold, and the Low Income Super Tax Offset can refund the 15 percent contributions tax up to $500 for income of $37,000 or less.
No. Salary sacrificed super is preserved until a condition of release is met, generally reaching preservation age and retiring, or turning 65.
An effective salary sacrifice arrangement must be agreed with the employer in advance, in writing, and for future earnings. It cannot apply to salary already earned.
Related calculators and guides
Sources
- •ATO, Salary sacrificing super
- •ATO, How to set up salary sacrifice for super
- •ATO, Understanding concessional and non-concessional contributions
- •ATO, Tax rates for Australian residents
- •ATO, Division 293 tax on concessional contributions by high-income earners
- •ATO, Low income super tax offset
- •ATO, Medicare levy reduction for low-income earners
Content reviewed and figures checked against the sources above on 17 October 2026.